i don't want a bride, i just want bone marrow
by thefudge is grumpy
Summary: AH. Kai Parker is the school pariah, the number one freak everyone avoids. But Bonnie Bennett is new. AU.
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: so, a few weeks ago i made an edit for bookai (bonkai halloween week) that made me want to write this high school AU. it will probably be around 2 or 3 parts, but I have to warn you in advance that a) it's a hatchet job, meaning I wrote it fast and loose cuz it's a total guilty pleasure and it might read sloppy (i mean some parts may sound ridic) and b) it's dark and weird and gross and it will just get darker (and juicier, i hope). If you keep all that in mind u should have fun!_

 _(title is taken from the song below. yes i'm corny as hell)_

 _(oh, some of the scenes in this story are based on a movie called "teenage dirtbag", a little indie gem from 2009. but they're also pretty different because kai parker lol)_

* * *

 _Fangs are sharp and I hope you know_

 _That all I really want from you is that throat_

 _I can't eat pussy cause I might leave cuts_

 _Then there's blood on my sheets, but that might be a plus_

Tyler the Creator - Transylvania

* * *

1/?

"Bonnie, get your head in the game!" Caroline corralled her.

The young girl tugged at the hem of her skirt. She bent down and retied her shoelaces. She couldn't focus properly.

The "freak" was staring at her. And she knew she was giving him a view.

They called him that because even the burnouts and the trouble-makers thought he was weird and creepy. Kai 'Malachai' Parker wore combo boots and kid-sized cargo pants and always had a bag of smelly pork rinds with him wherever he went. He liked to pick his teeth with a pocket-knife which the school warden had not managed to confiscate. Headphones dangled from his neck, but if people expected him to listen to hard metal or something equally disturbing but at least predictable, Kai Parker disappointed them. And put them on edge. He liked to listen to 90s Euro Pop, commercial jingles, and Saturday morning cartoons theme songs. You could hear him humming about She-Ra and He-Man as you passed by his locker, which most people tried not to.

Bonnie had been warned about him, but she had stupidly drawn his attention.

When her dad relocated them to Mystic Falls and she was given the high school tour by Caroline Forbes, she made the mistake of asking about him. She saw him standing by himself in the cafeteria, eating the most disgusting, sloppy meatloaf she'd ever seen, mouth exposed, juices running down his chin. But she thought he was kind of – weirdly cute? Certainly if he wore different clothes and stopped being so disgusting he'd be good looking.

Caroline shook her head apprehensively and wrinkled her nose. "You do not _ever_ want to approach that guy. He's a freak. Literally, he _loves_ freaking people out. You can't talk to him. Even the teachers give him a wide berth."

Bonnie was nonplussed. "Why does he act like that?"

Caroline sat down next to her and settled in for some gossip. "No one really knows. His dad's a pastor, very sweet man, wouldn't hurt a fly. His mom died when they were younger – which is sad cuz they have like a _hundred_ kids, so they're all raising each other. But they look like a very nice family – except for him. He's the black sheep, obviously."

Bonnie felt a stab of envy mingled with sympathy. She would've liked to have a big family. She could've dealt with a hundred brothers and sisters, just not to feel so lonely. But at least her mother was still alive. Estranged, but alive.

She took heed of Caroline's warning and stifled her curiosity about the outcast. But her eyes strayed towards him during that first lunch. Maybe it was because back at her old school – very white, even more Southern than Mystic Falls – she had been somewhat of an outsider. But she was here now – new place, new roots. She could reinvent herself. She might even try for cheerleading – her dad had always encouraged her to be a team player.

Just as she was about to look away, Kai Parker met her eyes across the room. People rarely looked at him for any length of time. He must have noticed.

He licked his thumb noisily as he stared back. He wasn't smiling, but his eyes danced with humor. Not the easy kind, where you throw your head back and laugh at a funny joke. More like the kind that grips you when you're at a funeral and suddenly you can't stop smiling even if they're about to lower someone in the ground.

She didn't know where all these thoughts were coming from. Or – suppose she knew. She fingered her half-moon necklace and looked down at her tray. Back in her native Georgia she had been interested in such things. She had spent her prepubescent years preoccupied with all things Wiccan and occult. She had found out one of her ancestors had been a rebel slave, tried and executed for being a witch and for putting charms on all the white masters who'd owned her. Every single one of them had died swallowing their own tongues. Bonnie had pored over books about witches, dark magic and voodoo, steeping herself in their lore until that was all she could dream of at night. Her grandmother had rather encouraged this propensity, teaching her about herbs and "potions". Harmless things, family recipes for salves, beauty creams and pain draughts, but Bonnie had gobbled them up like candy. She knew them by heart, preferred them to schoolwork. Her father had never liked this "childish nonsense" as he liked to call it, and he had been almost shamefully relieved when Sheila Bennett had passed away because he could finally remove Bonnie from her influence. Now that they had left Georgia behind, he hoped Bonnie would stop chanting spells in her room or burning incense and she'd make actual friends, become more of a joiner. Bonnie promised him she would try. She had never told him that at her old school one of the boys had slipped a "Kill the Witch" note in her locker. She wanted to leave that life behind, or at least bury it deep under her skin and only release it at night, when she was certain no one was watching.

So she'd put Kai Parker out of her mind and returned Caroline's winsome smile.

It wasn't that hard – they only shared three classes, and he always sat in the back, making spitballs and drawing severed heads in his spiral notebook.

She knew they were severed heads because during her second week of school, a piece of paper fell out of his grimy schoolbag when he left the classroom. The rest of her classmates had cleared out. Bonnie stooped down and picked it up gingerly. She stared at the drawing, taking in the details.

It was…not just disturbing, but deeply unsettling in a way she could not define. The drawing was of a faceless woman lying in bed, legs spread out wantonly. Between her legs was positioned the severed head of an older man with blood dripping copiously from eyes and mouth and throat. His tongue lolled out like a black worm.

Bonnie swallowed, felt a strange tingling in her arms. At the bottom of the page, Kai Parker had signed his work.

She could take it to a teacher, but she wasn't a narc. She could throw it away. Could crumple it up or rip it to shreds. Somehow, she stayed her hand. She felt it should be returned to him. Lord knew, her diary was a thing of horror sometimes and that didn't mean she was a bad person. Just that she sometimes needed an outlet.

She went after him to return it. It was the polite thing to do.

She caught him a few feet ahead of her down the corridor.

No one broached him regularly, unless they were desperate. People eyed her weirdly when she reached up to him and tapped him on the shoulder.

Kai swiveled his head towards her like a wooden toy on a spring. There was a cold flash of surprise in his eyes, replaced quickly with that brand of dead humor she'd witnessed before.

"Um, you dropped this. Maybe you want it back."

She held it out to him, keeping her gaze down.

Kai took a step towards her and she was assaulted by his smell – a mixture of sweet and sour, smoke and meat, primal and adolescent. His lanky, skinny frame made him look sharp, like a whittled down arrow. He didn't even glance at the drawing. A small smile tugged at his lips as he stared directly at her breasts.

 _Asshole_ , she thought. But she didn't cross her arms. She wouldn't give him that.

"Keep it," he said after a pause. "Put it on the ceiling above your bed."

Bonnie opened her mouth, tried to find something to say, but it was too late. He grinned and turned around, making his way towards the exit.

She had told herself she would keep well away from him after that, but here he was now, sitting on the bleachers, eating pork rinds, watching their cheer practice.

No, that wasn't precise. He wasn't looking at the other cheerleaders. She knew because when they were given individual drills, Kai only stared at her, only followed the rise and fall of _her_ legs, the angling of _her_ body in a cartwheel. She could almost feel it, his mean, sticky gaze.

She hadn't thrown away the drawing. It was crumpled in a ball at the bottom of her schoolbag.

The part of her that still clung to her old ways thought that he was here now because he _knew_ she hadn't disposed of it. She wondered if she should burn the paper and cast a cleansing spell. But she was trying to leave that life behind.

She jumped on the balls of her feet and tried to ignore him.

She could hear him though – even from that distance, she could hear him chew on his pork rinds noisily, hear the way he licked and sucked on his fingers. And his eyes – those eyes following her, they also licked and sucked on –

Elena Gilbert nudged her. "Caroline is going to kick you off the team if you don't stop daydreaming."

"I'm not. I just – I wish he'd go away."

Elena raised her eyebrows. "The freak? Just pretend he's not there. Don't give him the satisfaction."

Easier said than done.

* * *

He had random laughing fits during class. They'd start small, like choking hiccups. But they'd eventually graduate to hyena-like guffaws that made everyone else tense up.

Their history teacher put down the chalk.

"Something particularly funny about the Cuban Missile Crisis, Mr. Parker?"

Kai showed his teeth the way you'd show someone the middle finger. "Just thinking about getting blown up by those Ruskies."

"I don't see the funny part."

"You had to be there," he chuckled impishly, as if he was a time-traveler who'd walked up the shore at the Bay of Pigs.

Eventually, Mr. Saltzman returned to the lesson and so did the rest of the class. Bonnie was the last one who turned her head away, not before catching Kai's wink.

A paper plane hit her in the back just as the bell rang. Kids shuffled out, but she stayed in her seat. She picked up the plane and unfolded the paper.

It was the same drawing as before; the woman with her legs spread open, the severed head between her thighs, but this time the head had a ticking bomb in his mouth.

Bonnie turned around to confront him but the classroom was empty.

* * *

Bonnie walked home on foot. Matt Donovan had offered to give her a ride, which had flattered her. She knew she was "a gorgeous little thing" as Grams used to say, and now that she wasn't wearing baggy dresses and thick leg warmers, not to mention the psychedelic eye-shadow, guys were starting to take note.

But she still felt new to all of this, so she said she'd take him up on it another time.

She should have said yes.

When she rounded the corner to her street, she saw Kai Parker hopping over a garden fence. Bonnie was pretty sure that wasn't his house.

Kai picked up the water hose lying around in the grass and turned it on. He put the nozzle straight into his mouth, like the barrel of a gun. He let the jet blast his jaws apart, chugging water like he wanted to die. Water dribbled freely down his face and chin, down his throat, shirt, pants, pooling around him like blood.

She wanted to throw up.

But most of all, she felt thirsty.

Kai lowered the hose, let it dangle from his fingers. He was soaked, yet it also looked like the water was trying desperately to leech off his coltish body.

She saw him turn the hose on her with a mad grin. Bonnie was still wearing her cheer uniform. Even though she was across the street from him, he could still do some damage.

She swallowed and raised her hands pleadingly.

"Don't do it, weirdo."

"Say the magic words," he taunted, waving the hose at hip level.

"Please?"

"That's not it."

Bonnie gritted her teeth. " _Pretty_ please?"

"What else?" His thumb moved rhythmically over the nozzle.

She curled her toes inside her shoes. "With - with sugar on top?"

His eyes darkened slightly and she saw his hand grip the hose tighter. Bonnie cursed under her breath, preparing to run for cover.

But she didn't have to. He dropped the hose at his feet, stepped over it and walked away whistling down the street.

She stared after him for a full minute.

.

* * *

Bonnie got in the shower and held her mouth up to the spray.

* * *

She was still finding her footing around school, so when she stumbled upon the stoner pit, she thought it was just a random secluded place behind the dumpsters.

But then she saw him standing against one of the dumpsters, surrounded by a small group of bleary-eyed teenagers with cigarettes in their mouths. Bonnie didn't recognize all of them, but she thought one of the girls was Matt's sister.

Kai reached down to one of his boots and took out two plastic bags.

"Say _aaaa_ ," he instructed Vicky, grabbing her chin and tipping her head up.

Vicky did not look very happy about his manhandling, but she opened her mouth obediently. It was strange. Kai was outnumbered. The other guys could've taken him. Why were they just standing there, watching?

Kai emptied the contents of one bag into Vicky's mouth.

Three seconds later, her eyes started watering and she spat white saliva all over the concrete.

"You asshole!"

"You have to let it work its wonders, silly," he chided, stepping away from her heaving. "You'll feel better afterwards. Or not. Just drink plenty of liquids."

His laughter echoed sharply against the concrete.

Bonnie ran away before she could figure out what was happening, although she was sure he had seen her.

Later, she found out that he sometimes sold a variety of unknown drugs to the stoners, but he liked to play "pranks" with his merchandise. Sometimes he'd trick them into taking some really nasty shit, so there was always a guinea pig who tried it before everyone else did. Vicky had pulled the shortest straw that day.

Bonnie thought of her potions and draughts, her treasured concoctions which always lifted her spirits.

Did he make his own brews, cook his own poisons? Did that bring him joy?

She was curious, and it bothered her that this was her first instinct.

* * *

She let Matt take her out for a drink at the Grill, all the while wondering if she should tell him about his little sister. Maybe it wasn't her business.

Matt talked to her about football, about his dream of being a cop one day (at which she said nothing and merely sipped her drink diplomatically), his favorite TV Show, _The Big Bang Theory_.

Bonnie smiled and tried to think of something to say, but she liked listening to him. She felt better not having to reveal anything about herself.

He drove her home afterwards. But first, he wanted to show her something. He took her to the Falls which she hadn't seen before properly.

Bonnie got out of the car and stared in awe at the precipice, the steady outpour, the generous, unguarded way of nature. She breathed in the smell of minerals and water. She walked towards the old bridge. She had a feeling this was one of those small town spots where kids liked to hold hands and make-out. Maybe she wouldn't mind doing that with Matt. It was beautiful, after all.

"Oh shit. Didn't know _he_ was here," her date muttered.

Bonnie saw a dark figure against the autumn sky. He was standing at the top of the waterfall, right on the mossy bank. She couldn't tell from that distance, but he appeared to be naked. She held her breath, feeling a strange pressure in her chest.

Kai Parker jumped into the waterfall.

Bonnie cried out.

Matt put his arm around her, drawing her back.

"We have to do something, he's gonna die –"

"He's pulled this stunt before."

"What?"

Matt was right. A few moments later, Kai emerged from the whirlpool like a god of the river.

His hair was plastered to his head. His face was split, mouth gaping, as if he had been trying to catch fish with his teeth. There were bruises on his skin, open gashes. He was bleeding.

He screamed a scream of victory, and it turned into a laugh.

"Like the view?" he called out to them, wading towards the shore. It was now quite obvious he was stark naked.

"Come on, let's leave psycho alone." Matt pulled her away from the scene, but Bonnie craned her neck to look back.

Kai was not staring at her. He was glaring at Matt's retreating back and the chilling hatred in his eyes made her shudder.

* * *

She remembered she had muttered an incoherent protection spell before she saw him fall into the water.

Had it helped?

No. This was just something he did, Matt told her.

The freak liked to put himself in danger. Death wish and all that.

Still, Bonnie wanted to think it was her spell that had saved him.

.

* * *

Olivia Newton John's _Physical_ was blasting from his headphones. He was dangling the sharp end of a pencil close to his eye, trying not to flinch.

Bonnie sat down across from him and slapped the piece of paper on the table.

Kai dropped the pencil with a petulant frown.

"Will you please stop giving me these?" she said in a low voice, trying to contain her anger. This was study period, after all, and Mrs. Allen was patrolling the tables.

Kai looked down at the graphic drawing of a woman at the bottom of a pool being penetrated by a slew of greedy tentacles. Up close, they looked like water hoses.

He leaned back with a smirk. "You're the one who picks them up."

"This one landed in my bag," she muttered, stabbing the drawing with her finger.

"I was aiming for your head. Not my fault you move in your seat."

"You have to stop."

"Aw come on, _Bonnie-Boo_. We both know that's not what you want."

It was the first time he was calling her something and – she didn't like it.

"Don't call me that."

"What should I call you?"

She inhaled. "The – the girl in the drawing looks like me."

Kai picked it up, examined it, cocked his head to the side like he was considering her theory.

"I don't see it."

"I do."

Mrs. Allen was nearing their table. Bonnie opened one of her books and pretended to read.

Kai snatched the drawing and shoved it under his shirt.

When the elderly teacher moved away, Bonnie breathed a sigh of relief. "God, what if she'd seen that –?"

Kai tapped his chin. "You think we should leave it for her? I bet she'd get a kick out of it, if you know what I mean." He wriggled his eyebrows.

"Eww." She made a gagging sound, but she couldn't help a small, shameful smile.

Kai stared at her. "So why don't you report me?"

Bonnie busied herself with putting the book back in her bag. "I don't want any trouble."

"You realize I won't stop."

"Why – why not?"

Kai leaned forward. She didn't recognize the song blaring from his headphones, but a woman was singing about "murder on the dance floor". It was so incongruous she almost wanted to laugh.

But his eyes pinned her down.

"You're my muse, Bonnie- _Boo_. You keep giving me these ideas...You drive me _on_."

She didn't say 'don't call me that'. She just gathered her things and left. She still felt that shameful smile on her lips.

* * *

In English, the creative assignment was to choose the lyrics of a song that meant something to you and recite them in front of the class.

Bonnie was leery of having to stand up in front of everyone and share her innermost self. But she remembered the "kill the witch" sign left in her locker at her last school. She wanted to take a stand, show people that the new Bonnie could not be stepped on.

She walked up to the blackboard. The teacher nodded in encouragement. Her classmates smiled, expecting something sweet from the sweet new girl.

"Southern trees bear a strange fruit," she began slowly, staring out the window. "Blood on the leaves and blood at the root, black bodies swinging in the southern breeze, strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees…"

The atmosphere shifted, became oppressive. The air shimmered as she recited about the "scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh, then the sudden smell of burning flesh". She didn't stop until she finished all of Billie Holiday's _Strange Fruit_.

When she was done, the teacher's mouth was pursed and her classmates avoided looking at her directly.

With a sinking feeling, Bonnie realized she'd made a mistake. She had reverted to her old self, the _weird_ self. Why had she done this, why was she trying to alienate them?

But then she caught the eyes at the back of the class.

Kai Parker leaned over his desk, completely alert. He wasn't smiling, though his mouth was always on the verge of _something_.

His eyes shone with hunger and approval. She was his muse, after all.

.

* * *

In Biology they worked in pairs to dissect a frog. Bonnie was in charge of the scalpel, since she was the only one whose hand did not shake.

Kai sauntered over to her group towards the end of the lesson and picked up the jar full of guts and blood.

"Twenty bucks says I drink it."

The boys in the group eyed him warily. "Will you do it for ten?"

"Ten each. Come on, don't be cheapskates," he wheedled.

"I'll give you another five," Meredith piped up with a nasty giggle.

Bonnie nudged her in the shoulder. "Don't encourage him."

Kai picked up the jar and tipped it over. Everyone looked away in disgust as gasps and shudders swept the class.

Only Bonnie did not look away. She watched him, half-incredulous, half-curious. Could he drink it all without throwing up?

He did. He craned his neck and let every last drop glide down his throat.

It must have tasted awful.

Or maybe – not so awful, since he could do it.

Bonnie licked her lips.

* * *

She was lying in bed, staring laconically at the draft of an incomplete essay, when her phone buzzed with a new message.

 _You were so hot when you licked your lips. I jerked off for two hours just thinking about it._

Bonnie scrambled out of bed, feet getting tangled in her duvet. Her heart thudded painfully in her chest. Her father was making dinner downstairs. She could hear him fiddling with the stove.

Bonnie went to her window, glancing out warily as if expecting to see him down the street, waving at her.

She opened it halfway, letting the cool breeze in. Even so, a light sheen of sweat dappled the small of her back.

She typed furiously.

 _How did you get my number? B._

 _I hacked your phone, obviously. K._

 _No, you didn't. B._

 _Fine. I hacked someone else's phone to get your number. K._

 _Stop lying. B._

 _I'm invading your privacy. Does it matter how I did it? K._

 _Yes. B._

 _What are you wearing? K._

Bonnie choked on her anger.

 _You mean you can't see through the camera you had installed in my room? B._

 _Ahahahahahaha. You're so funny. Bra or no bra? K._

 _I can just block you. B._

 _But u won't. K._

 _What makes you think that? B._

 _Are you gonna go out with Mattie D again? K._

 _None of your business. B._ She hated that she giggled a little at 'Mattie D'.

 _Mattie D is young, has his whole life ahead of him. K._

 _Your point? B._

 _Wouldn't want anything to happen to him, u know? K._

Bonnie sat down on the window seat. The cool air made her shiver, but she welcomed it. She felt feverish.

 _What does that mean? B._

 _You know what it means. Scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh. K._

He was quoting "Strange Fruit". Bonnie felt dread and excitement and revulsion in the pit of her stomach. Like swallowing a jar of guts and blood.

 _Did you put them up on the ceiling like I told u? K._

His drawings. Bonnie stared guiltily at the cardboard box under the bed where she kept some old toys and knickknacks from the old house in Georgia.

 _No. I burned them. B._

 _Liar. But it's okay. I can always make you more. K._

The thought electrified her. It made her squirm and sink her toes in the carpet.

 _Gotta go wipe the cum off me. Night, Bonnie-Boo. K._

Bonnie swallowed hard. He'd been jerking off to her, he said. She tried not to picture it. But everything was a picture with him; graphic and painful and raw.

She sank down on the bed and squeezed her thighs shut. She felt that if she touched herself, he'd know.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: i'm so stunned, i didn't expect yall to give me such lovely feedback, tbh! i'm so glad you're as balls deep into this AU as I am! lmao. bless you all. I just wanna say this chapter definitely...made me...sweat (honestly, i feel like it both aged me and gave me an extra ten years' stamina, it's...something) and we haven't even gotten to the really wild shit yet, ahahah. Anyway, I will shut up now and let you enjoy!_

* * *

2/?

Bonnie climbed over the girls' milky white limbs. She reached the top with a halting breath. It was too high. The world blurred.

She dropped down from the pyramid with a sickening thud.

Everyone in the gym gasped, including the coach.

People rushed towards her. The girls picked her up from the floor.

It wasn't as bad as they thought.

Bonnie Bennett was made of stronger stuff. She had just bruised her knees and torn the skin of her chin, although later some of the girls would say she should've been hurt way worse. It was a wonder she'd got off so easy.

Caroline fluttered nervously to her side, feeling responsible for her accident. She had made a rookie climb the pyramid, after all.

She took her hand in hers. "I'm _so_ sorry, Bonnie, I just thought you should be at the top, visually speaking, cuz it would be more impactful for the team…"

 _Visually speaking_ , Bonnie snorted to herself. Caroline meant well, but she was making it out like Bonnie was supposed to be the caramel cherry on top of a white cake. She cradled her bleeding chin. "It's all right…Could've been worse."

The coach rushed over and told the girls to help her up, but Bonnie brushed them aside. She clambered unsteadily to her feet and started limping towards the exit.

"Bennett, wait, I'm taking you to the –"

"It's fine, Coach Tanner, I can handle it."

She rushed out before the tears spilled down her cheeks. She didn't know why she was crying. Must be the adrenaline. The near brush with death. She ached everywhere.

Blood ran down her throat and spattered her tank top. She let it fall.

The hallway was quiet and empty. She passed by an open doorway.

It was the detention room. The door was never closed because one of the requirements for the offenders was to keep quiet.

Bonnie caught the flash of his profile. She slowed down. She saw him reclined lazily in his seat in the middle row, chewing on a pencil. Of course he was there.

She could've run off before he had the chance to see her, but she didn't.

In fact, she almost came to a halt in the doorway.

When his eyes finally lifted to her, Bonnie stood there defiantly, blood running down her chin into her shirt.

Kai Parker froze. He stood up straight. Dark eyes widened, lips parted. He looked as if Christmas had come early.

He gripped the edge of his desk, knuckles white, almost like he was about to push it aside and come after her.

Bonnie turned around and fled.

* * *

 _Who made u bleed like that, Bonnie-Boo?_ he texted her later that night.

Bonnie put down her algebra homework. She touched her chin gingerly. The thick bandage itched. Her dad had been more amused than upset, thankfully. She had sweetened the story for him.

 _Cheerleading_ , she texted back.

 _Doesn't answer my question…_

 _I fell from the pyramid,_ she wrote self-consciously.

 _Who pushed u? K._

 _No one. B._

 _Wish I'd seen it. K._

 _You did see it. B_.

 _Nah, not the moment of impact. That's the money shot. K._

Bonnie grimaced. _U want to see me get hurt?_

 _Yeah, but I wanna be the one who hurts you. So u better tell that Forbes bitch to watch her back._

Bonnie clicked her jaw. How did he know about Caroline? Was she that easy to read?

Well, he kept showing up to practice, so maybe he noticed more than she gave him credit for.

 _Don't call her that. It wasn't her fault. B._

 _Pff, I'll do more than call her names. K._

 _NO. Stop talking like that! B._

 _I'll carve it on her skin. Write 'bitch' on her stomach, right below the tits. I got just the knife. K._

Bonnie grimaced. _Jfc_. _This is exactly why ppl avoid you. Stop it._

There was a pause. Bonnie counted each second as it passed.

 _Aren't u curious tho?_ he finally typed.

 _About?_

 _About how I'd hurt you._

 _Idk, you'd probably make me eat pork rinds,_ she replied, relieved to have moved on from Caroline.

He inserted several laughing emojis and a small devil. _That's hilarious …but we both know that's not what you'd be eating._

Bonnie blushed, wishing she had ignored his text. Why was she playing his game?

 _Leave me alone. Gotta study now. B._

The incoming text was a pic. A photo of a drawing, to be precise. Bonnie zoomed in. She swallowed.

A young girl dripping with blood, coated from head to toe, was chained to a dungeon wall, arms and legs in shackles. A beast-like creature was kneeling between her legs, licking her clean. Or was it biting her? She couldn't tell. She didn't _want_ to tell.

But she zoomed in anyway.

* * *

The next day in school the whole cafeteria was abuzz. Poor Caroline Forbes had come down with a really nasty case of diarrhea and had been locked in the bathroom since second period. No one knew how that'd happened, since she mostly ate salads and yogurt.

Bonnie sat next to Meredith and tried not to look towards his corner.

She knew he was smirking at her.

* * *

Matt and Tyler caught up with her as she was leaving Biology. The former handed her a small gift bag with a smile.

"We heard about…" he pointed at his own chin.

Bonnie lowered her head self-consciously, but the boys insisted the bandage looked cool.

"Yeah, you look tough. Wouldn't wanna mess with you on the field," Tyler cajoled her with a wink.

Bonnie smiled, though she felt like a fraud. She appreciated their effort, at least.

She looked inside the gift bag and saw a stuffed teddy holding a little red heart.

"Aww, thank you, you guys are really sweet."

She didn't notice Kai Parker watching them with contempt across the hallway.

* * *

The teddy was gone by the time she finished classes. She didn't know how it disappeared. One minute it was sitting in her locker, the next it was…

Well, it wasn't exactly _gone_.

Matt had offered to give her a ride home, but when they reached his car, he had to stifle a violent reaction.

The teddy bear's head was impaled on the hood crest. The rest of its stuffed limbs were strewn about the car in a faux plush carnage.

Bonnie found the image so grotesque, so absurd, so _ridiculous_ that she couldn't help a small giggle.

Matt stared at her. "Jesus, this isn't funny."

"No, it isn't." She lowered her gaze, ashamed with herself. Why was she like this? Why couldn't she respond to things normally? Why wasn't she more like Matt?

It's when they both got closer to the car that they realized why it really _wasn't_ all that amusing. The teddy bear was coated in a thick white fluid.

Matt put a hand to his mouth.

"Jesus. That _freak_ did it. We have to do something about him. He can't pull something like this." He clenched his fists at his side.

Bonnie stared at the offending sperm. It was so...organic, disturbing in its potentiality. A jolt travel down her spine.

Somehow, she felt Kai Parker would get away with this.

* * *

 _That was horrible what u did_ , she texted him.

A few minutes later, he typed, _You liked it._

No, of course she _hadn't_.

God, how could she? It was fucked up.

But somehow, she couldn't find the energy to express her denial.

* * *

It was Rudy's turn to make breakfast, but he did it more often than he should have, because he didn't like it when Bonnie left the house with just a pop tart and half a banana.

That morning he'd made a delicious stack of buttery pancakes. Probably to make her feel better about her injuries.

She sat down at the table, stomach rumbling.

"That looks really good, Daddy."

Rudy smiled, rubbing the side of her arm. "I'm glad. We haven't sat down like this in a while."

She smiled back, picking up her fork. Her phone buzzed in her pocket.

Bonnie looked down briefly.

 _Morning, Bonnie-Boo. Taking a shower and thinking of you._

Her small intake did not go completely unnoticed by her father. "Anything wrong?"

Bonnie thought quickly. "Uh. Nothing. Caroline needs me to show up early for practice."

"That girl is a real piece of work," he said with a soft chuckle.

Bonnie forced a smile. Every time she did it, it made her skin burn.

Another message lit up her screen.

 _Stroking my cock picturing you in here with me…_

 _you're wet and kneeling and you take me slowly in your mouth, you lick the head like it's candy floss…_

Warm liquid pooled in her stomach. She swallowed hard, hooking her ankles under the table.

She was hyper aware that Rudy was watching her. She tried to put the phone away, but Kai was still typing and…she wanted to know.

 _But I don't let you suck my dick_

 _Not yet_

 _I pick you up and wrap your legs around me and u fit so good_

 _I squeeze your ass against my hips and u wanna moan so bad but you're too proud_

 _Don't worry I take my time_

 _I fuck you against the wall until u scream for me to stop because you're gonna fucking cum and I don't stop, I never stop_

Bonnie stifled a gasp. She bit down on her lip until she felt the tangy taste of blood.

Rudy scowled. "Tell that girl you're spending time with your family. She can wait."

Bonnie curled her toes. She dragged her sneakers across the floor, trying to regain composure.

She texted back. _You're sick._

 _Yeah, but you still cum so hard around my cock_

Bonnie slammed the phone against the table. "I told her."

She thought she wouldn't have an appetite anymore. But she dug into her pancakes with a fury.

The butter melted on her tongue, making her tingle, making her gag.

* * *

"I left my French book upstairs."

In fact, she hadn't. But she needed to go change. Her panties were wet and sticky and she wasn't going to go to school like that.

She thrummed with resentment and arousal and disgust. She grabbed her phone.

 _Thx a lot, I had to change my underwear._

She didn't know why she did it. She knew it was stupid and reckless and nothing like her. Nothing like she should be.

She waited for several seconds. Nearly a minute. But no reply came. Bonnie felt an undercurrent of disappointment. Followed by regret and shame.

She shouldn't have typed that.

She heard her dad calling from downstairs.

* * *

Bonnie lingered by her locker, trying to put some order into her thoughts. At this rate she'd be really late for class. But Matt had mentioned homecoming to her as they were walking down the hall. He'd made no formal invitation, but he expected to see her there and witness him triumphant at the parade, the star quarterback. He hoped she'd also save him a dance.

Bonnie slid the books back in their slot. She didn't understand why she wasn't more excited about the prospect. He was handsome and nice, and he liked her. It was bound to be a good time.

Why did she not look forward to it?

A fist slammed against the locker next to hers and she almost shrieked.

She whipped around but it was too late.

Kai Parker pushed her up against the locker, effectively blocking her path. He crowded her from all sides, both of his arms coming to rest next to the side of her head.

Bonnie's eyes searched left and right. The hallway was deserted. Of course he'd chosen this very moment when she was alone and vulnerable.

"Kai –"

He bent his head until he was only inches apart. His expression was oddly intense, almost violent.

The smolder was slightly ruined by the cheesy 80s music streaming out of his headphones.

 _Get outta my dreams, get into my car…_

Or maybe it wasn't ruined at all. Maybe he meant for her to hear it.

"I'm gonna ruin this pair too, you know," he whispered against her cheek and his eyes lowered to her waist.

Bonnie tried to breathe slowly, tried not to inhale too much of him at once. But his words traveled straight to her core.

"Get off me."

He ignored her. "Did you like the drawing?"

"No. Sorry to say, it wasn't your best."

He smirked, her insult only egging him on. "One day, I'm gonna chain you up like that and you'll tell me the truth. You'll be screaming it loud and clear."

"I'll scream right now if you don't walk away," she said, her chest heaving, brushing up against his.

"Do it," he murmured, his forehead almost touching hers.

Her lips parted, but no sound came. Her throat was dry.

They exchanged oxygen.

The sound of a doorway opening and closing shut made them break apart.

Kai let her go, snaking past her, fingers brushing up against her jeans.

Bonnie leaned back against the locker with a shudder.

* * *

Bonnie told herself the goose bumps were from the cold. Not because Kai was lounging on the bleachers, watching her intently.

From now on, she was not going to look in his direction.

But…he kept moving from seat to seat, always striving to be in her line of vision. He jumped over the benches haphazardly, teeth sinking into the flesh of a green apple.

He chewed the pulp noisily and spat the core in front of him.

It was unnerving.

Soon it became clear he was also mouthing words at her.

She wasn't a practiced lip reader. At first she couldn't tell what he was saying. But she soon deciphered the meaning.

" _Come_. _Here_ ," he mouthed as he wiped apple juice from his chin.

It was a mantra he kept repeating, enunciating each letter deliberately.

 _Come here, come here, come here, come here…._

Bonnie shook her head, pony-tail bouncing behind her.

Kai stopped. Then he pointed at Caroline, who was currently stretching her leg, oblivious to the "freak" watching them.

Kai dragged a line across his middle section.

Bonnie remembered.

 _Write 'bitch' on her stomach, right below the tits. I got just the knife._

She shivered. It was just the autumn chill.

Coach Tanner told them they'd done enough for the day.

But she wasn't going up there. She wasn't.

* * *

"What do you want?" she asked stiffly, arms folded protectively over her chest. She stood at the edge of the row.

"Why, nothing much, Miss Bennett. Only to apologize for my ungentlemanly behavior the other day," he drawled with Southern affectation, patting the seat next to him.

She rolled her eyes. "That sounds about as convincing as my left shoe."

He put his hand over his chest. "I'm hurt, Bonnie. I speak from the heart."

"I'm pretty sure that's not the organ you're talking about."

He laughed, tilting his head back. "Hey, you said it, not me. But come on. Let me make it up to you. Let me apologize properly. I promise you won't regret it."

"I already do."

He kicked the seat in front of him. "Don't make me have to threaten the people around you, cuz that's _such_ a drag…"

Bonnie wavered. The sensible part of her told her he was not going to apologize and that whatever he said wouldn't make things any better.

But another part of her wanted to wait and see what he'd do. He was compelling in a maddening way. She couldn't close the book, couldn't stop reading the chapter.

She climbed a seat higher than him, putting some distance between them. She smoothed down her skirt and sat down.

Kai slouched back, leaning his arms against the backrests.

She realized with chagrin she'd made a mistake. His head was now level with her knees.

She drew her legs closer and cleared her throat. "The apology?"

Kai leaned his head back, exposing his Adam's apple. He stared at her upside down. "I'm really sorry, Bonnie. I'm sorry I invaded your personal space and made you feel "unsafe". That's a big no-no in my book. It's also a big no-no in the Mystic Falls council by-laws. And you _don't_ mess with the by-laws. We take shit like that seriously in this here municipality."

She suppressed a snort.

"To show you how repentant I am," he continued, impassioned, "I'm gonna punish myself."

And he produced something from his pocket, lifting it high for her to see.

A Zippo lighter.

He brushed his thumb over the lid, flicking it open and shut a few times, the flame bursting and expiring with each flick.

But the more he did it, the closer his thumb got to the flame, until the fire started licking at the skin and slowly blackening his digit. The sight was repellant and compulsive.

He did it enough times to make her wince. "You can stop now."

He smiled, noting her expression. "It doesn't hurt that bad. It's actually kind of nice."

"I really doubt it."

Kai craned his neck further. "Want me to show you?"

Bonnie leaned back. "I'm fine, thanks."

"Aww, come on," he crooned, turning his body halfway, "don't you trust me?"

She wanted to laugh. "Of course not."

He winked at her. "Smart girl." There was a pause as he rubbed his thumb against the flint. "How smart are you, though?"

He started low at her feet. He dragged the jagged edge of the Zippo against her bare ankles. Bonnie jumped slightly, feeling the brush of his knuckles and the metal digging into her skin.

"Don't you wanna be warm?" he asked, flicking the lighter open. The orange flare was so close to her calf that she was afraid she'd be branded.

And yet, she didn't move away. Her father would have called it recklessness. Her Grams would have called it dumb courage.

In fact, she looked straight into Kai's eyes. She didn't know why. She just knew she had to _see_ him while he was doing this, had to read whatever was in that void.

He returned her gaze. He parted his lips. His tongue seemed to dart out as he traced the flame across her bare leg.

Bonnie felt drawn like a moth to a flame. Literally.

It hurt a little, but he was right. The fire only kissed her, black tongue licking the dullness away…

Her breath hitched when he moved the Zippo higher and higher… warm against her thigh, close to the hem of her uniform.

"Your little skirt's in the way. I think I should turn it to ashes."

Bonnie kept very still as he dangled the flame in the small gap between her legs, almost catching the fabric of her uniform.

She was mesmerized by the fire. Always had been. Ever since she could remember, her rituals had consisted of burning. She almost wanted him to do it. She realized that her fear was like a potent cordial, making her blood run faster, _redder_. It was the kind of fear you dipped your toe into. She wanted to be washed in it.

She parted her legs slightly, maybe unconsciously, maybe on purpose.

His wrist jerked.

His eyes became darker than the void. She gazed into them until it didn't matter if he burned her.

She heard shouts in the distance.

It took a moment to realize they were still on the bleachers and other people could walk by and see them.

Bonnie's sense of shame returned. Her hand darted out and caught his wrist, shutting the lighter.

Kai startled at the contact. He stared at her hand over his.

But Bonnie was looking beyond him at a group of seniors who were whispering and pointing at them. This could not bode well.

* * *

Matt cornered her in the parking lot with a concerned look on his face.

"Look…maybe it's none of my business, but the guys said they saw you cozying up to that Parker freak on the bleachers and… you remember he's a psychopath, right? Seriously, you gotta be careful. You _saw_ what he did to that teddy bear. You were _there_. I'm pretty sure he also made our class hamster disappear in seventh grade. All I'm saying is...stay away from him for your own good."

Bonnie would have laughed if she weren't so ticked off. "Okay…you're right. This _isn't_ any of your business. And I wasn't cozying up to him. We were just talking. I know he's kind of weird but -"

" _Kind_ of? Are you serious? Look, I get that you're new in town and you don't have the hang of things yet, but I'm trying to help you –"

"I can look after myself, thank you."

Matt's face fell. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. It's just – he's dangerous. And you shouldn't be seen with him anyway. He doesn't have any friends for a reason. He hurts people. He's basically a walking cancer."

Bonnie did not feel compelled to defend Kai Parker. Not one bit. Maybe Matt was right. But a part of her wanted to retort, _Maybe I want the cancer._

She inhaled slowly. The new black girl couldn't afford to get too angry.

"Thanks for…letting me know, Matt. I'll keep that in mind."

He smiled in relief. "Good. I just want you to be safe, you know? Who knows what kind of freak fetish he has about you."

 _Freak fetish._

Bonnie opened her mouth, closed it shut. Matt looked like he had no idea what he'd said. She didn't know if she could ever explain it to him.

She smiled coolly. Fetish, huh? "If he's so bad then why is your sister getting high with him behind the dumpsters?"

Matt balked. "What?"

"Ask Vicky, she'll tell you."

She turned around and left him standing there.

* * *

She came to regret her outburst when Matt texted her later that night. He claimed that he had only ever tried to be her friend, and there was no reason for her to _lie_.

Bonnie stared at her phone.

 _Vicky says she has no clue what you're implying. She's pretty upset because of you. I thought you were different, Bonnie._

She started laughing hysterically. Guess she wasn't gonna dance with him at homecoming.

She was probably not even going anymore.

Her screen lit up again, but it wasn't Matt retracting his words.

 _Picking you up tomorrow for homecoming._

 _Tell your Dad it's Mattie Dickbag parked outside. K._

Bonnie frowned. She was not in the mood for whatever devious plot he had in mind. She was already verging on social pariah if she was not careful. She had to rehabilitate her image somehow.

She wrote back. _I'm not going anywhere with you._

 _We're not actually_ _going_ _to homecoming u silly goose._

 _Kai, I'm serious._

 _Me too. Pick you up tomorrow at eight. Wear smth slutty._

 _No._

 _Kiiiiiidding. U can wear a cowl for all I care. I'm gonna tear it off u anyway._

 _Like I said, this isn't happening._

 _I wanna show u something special in the woods. Come on…u know u wanna…_

Bonnie shook her head. No, _no_ , she wasn't going to be tempted. There was nothing to tempt her here anyway.

 _Bye, Kai._

A string of hysterically laughing emojis.

 _Bonnie-Boo…stop kidding yourself._

 _You know you're already mine._

The drawing he sent her this time was not explicit. In fact it was quite…tame.

A young woman who was clearly meant to represent Bonnie was lying on her back in the middle of a lush meadow. Her nakedness was hidden, every inch of skin covered by the word _mine, mine, mine, mine, mine, mine, mine_ on her belly, on her breasts, on her cunt, down her legs, down her arms, even between her fingers, scribbled on her chin, her cheeks, her forehead, her eyelids, _mine, mine, mine, mine, mine_ …

It was the fine detail, the utterly meticulous aspect of his possession that unnerved her.

She wanted to scorn his claim. She wanted to believe he was still a harmless boy. Yeah, a little violent and disturbed, but then …who wasn't?

He was not a threat. He just had…an obsession. This was his way of dealing with a crush.

And maybe she too – if the circumstances had been different –

Her throat tightened with strange, primal foreboding. The blood of her ancestors warned her, told her she was dancing on the edge.

She just had to stay away.

Stay away.

Stay…away.

* * *

 _TBC (hehe)_


	3. Chapter 3

_A/N: oh haaaaiiii, is it like a year later? i didn't notice. yall, this chapter took forever to write, it kept getting away from me, like it was cursed or something. maybe God is trying to tell me something. naaah, just kidding, he's a bonkai fan, we been knew. anyway, idk how this turned out, i hope you like it? and lol, this story might not be done, why am i like this? but thank u for your lovely (and sometimes hilarious) reviews and for sticking with me and this story! _

* * *

3/3 (?)

Bonnie promised herself she wouldn't look. She spent most of the afternoon cleaning her room while browsing "Which Food + Character from _Stranger Things_ are you" quizzes in order to distract herself, but five minutes to eight o'clock found her peeping behind her curtains at the empty street below. She couldn't see any cars parked outside. She craned her neck for good measure. Nothing and no one. She stood like that for a long time, waiting, thumb scratching the bottom of her lip. Eight o'clock came and went. Then five minutes, ten, fifteen, twenty...

The neighborhood was quiet and unchanged. No creepy teenage boy with a disturbing fixation on her was lurking outside. Everything was right in the world.

Bonnie pulled the curtains shut. She released a breath. _Good_. He'd only been toying with her. It's not like she actually expected him to pick her up. He probably chickened out at the last moment. Or maybe he'd parked his car further away and she couldn't see him. Should she check -

" _No_. What is wrong with you?" she asked out loud.

What she was going to do was take a shower. All this cleaning and time-wasting had made her feel icky. She'd take a shower and go to bed. That was the plan.

The hot water did little to relieve the surly mood that had suddenly taken over her. In fact, the hot drops hitting her back only made her angrier. This was a new town, new school. Why should she hide at home like a loser and not go out to have fun? She wasn't the "outsider", she'd just had an argument with Matt. She could fix that. Or _not_ fix it, because she didn't need his approval. She would show up on her own and enjoy herself and ignore the weird looks.

She stormed back into her room and rifled through her clothes for the right outfit. Something that would scream "I don't care", but also "I'm not weird". It was a difficult balance to strike. Out of habit, she checked her phone. No invasive messages from Kai. _Good_ , again. He hadn't bothered to explain himself, what a shock.

Or maybe he'd finally learned about boundaries.

Whatever it was, she wasn't going to think about it anymore.

"Dad, don't wait up for me!" she called out as she rushed out the door.

* * *

It was better and worse than she'd expected.

Better because the middling crowd gathered in the gymnasium didn't look anywhere near as intimidating as she'd thought. The kids shuffled on the dance floor, sweaty and nervous and unsure whether they should rap along to the lyrics of "Bitch Better Have My Money", while their teachers watched from the sidelines. They certainly didn't mind that she'd come by herself, dressed in an Eartha-Kitt-inspired black dress and tall black boots. In fact, they were pretty friendly, all around.

But it was _worse_ because she soon realized that the only people left at the dance were the mild-mannered nerds who hadn't been invited to the _real_ homecoming bash, which one unlucky girl who wasn't invited told her was taking place in the woods by the waterfall. Bikinis optional, exclusive membership only.

"It's the cool kids' private party," another auburn-haired boy chimed in. "It's supposed to be amazing. Caroline Forbes is the sheriff's daughter so she makes sure they don't get in trouble."

Bonnie felt a strange chill down her spine. Small towns and their incestuous hierarchies always spooked her.

"That doesn't sound fair. Why do they get to have all the unsupervised fun?"

"I bet they'd let you in their group," the first girl, April, told her with a sad smile. "They like you. You're new and pretty."

Bonnie frowned. "I don't like _them_. And you know what? We're _all_ pretty. And we should _all_ go. Let's ambush their stupid party. They can't get rid of us."

Most of the kids around her seemed unsure. Nobody liked the popular crowd very much, but they had a curfew, and they didn't want to rock the boat. They still had to face those people come Monday. But April and the boy, Jared, and a couple of other disgruntled Mystic High outsiders decided to join her cause. One of them offered to drive.

Bonnie smiled. She'd found her crowd.

* * *

She remembered the first time she saw this idyllic place when Matt drove her to the bridge. There was little idyllic about it now. The Mystic Falls waterfall from which the town got its divinely inspired name would have been a lovely, luminous spot were it not for the myriapod teenagers turning the meadow into a mosh pit and churning the lake's surface with their fleshy, naked bodies. Beer flowed liberally, bad trap music blared from the stereos, people burped and laughed and littered garbage on the forest floor and teetered drunkenly into the water, and it all looked like the happy reel of a horror movie, before the kids start drowning or dropping dead from alcohol poisoning.

Bonnie wrinkled her nose. This is was their big homecoming party? She'd rather go back to that Buzzfeed quiz. But she'd come this far.

Her small army advanced on the partying crowd, stepping on red party cups and articles of clothing abandoned on the forest floor.

It didn't take much time for them to be spotted.

Tyler blocked her path before they could get too far.

"What are you guys doing here?"

Bonnie folded her arms. "What does it look like? We're joining the party."

"You weren't invited."

"We're gate-crashing. It's a statement," she explained, standing tall and proud in her black apparel, her followers behind her. A witch and her coven.

Tyler smiled. He wasn't particularly bothered by this development, but he knew Caroline and her squad might be. There was his loyalty to Matt to consider, too. He squared his shoulders. "Sorry, you chose the wrong night to make a statement."

April was already pulling on her sleeve, telling her maybe they should go.

Bonnie shook her off. "That's what they always say. Pretty lousy intimidation tactic. We're already here. You can't stop us."

Tyler lowered his voice. "Trust me, you don't want to be here tonight."

"Why not?"

Tyler pointed up. Bonnie's eyes followed the silver tongue of the waterfall to the top of the rocks. It was only now that she noticed the dark figures on the mossy bank. She thought she recognized a fair head of hair. Matt.

What were they doing up there?

On cue, several flashlights and phones were pointed to the top of the waterfall, bathing it in a sickly white, like a still frame from a murder scene.

Bonnie could see Matt clearly now. He and two other big guys from the football team were restraining a smaller figure between them, pinning him down. He was bound and gagged.

Bonnie narrowed her eyes. Those coltish limbs looked like -

"Kai," she whispered, horrified.

"What's going on?" she asked, dread pooling in her belly.

Tyler shrugged. "Stupid homecoming tradition."

"But what are they gonna do?"

"Chuck the freak in the water, what do you think?"

Bonnie stared at him, incredulous.

She'd seen Kai jump into the waterfall with her own eyes and he'd managed to survive, bruised and battered, but alive. He'd wanted to impress her and spite Matt.

But this was different. They'd tied him up. He was not going to be able to break the surface, if he survived.

"Jesus, they could kill him."

Tyler rubbed the back of his neck. "Nah. It's just a prank...the freak's done it before."

"Not like this."

"No one's died..." Tyler trailed off. _Yet_. That was the missing word.

Bonnie ran to the edge of the lake. This was her fault too. If she hadn't told Matt about Vickie maybe he wouldn't have gone after him.

She cupped her hands to her mouth.

" _Stop_. Matt, let him go!"

The golden boy's eyes landed on her. She must've been a dark speck to him. He could see his drunken grin, like butter spread on rye. There was something mythical about the way he held his feet apart, the way he stood at the top of the fall.

He laughed and his friends started swinging Kai's body backward and forward, ready to throw him over the edge.

She could see Kai's face now, full of blisters and cuts. They'd made sure to draw blood first.

Bonnie's anger was a strange bird which once released couldn't be caged back.

She felt it unfurl in her chest.

"Matt, don't do this!" she bellowed, and when she did, it sounded like a warning. She knew she'd never be able to climb up there and stop them, and yet the fire in her blood made her think she could. Fear and fury made her vulnerable, yet powerful. She was dark and small but stronger than them. Her ancestors had used the same powers, had spelled white men and made them swallow their tongues. Her grandmother hadn't lied. The boys at the old school in Georgia had called her a witch because they were afraid.

She raised her arms. "Stop it right now!"

The forest thrummed with her, turned her fingers into claws, _became_ her claws.

On-lookers could never be sure what happened next. Maybe Bonnie's screams had made them falter. Maybe Kai Parker had managed to wrestle free. But one moment the football players had their hands on his scruffy neck and the next, they were both slipping on the wet moss and falling over the edge.

They landed in the water with a sickening thud.

The crowd was tomb-silent for a moment. And then chaos erupted.

People ran into the water. Others were screaming. Beer cups sloshed to the ground.

Matt's face was ghostly white. He stepped back from the edge, afraid he'd fall too.

Bonnie lowered her shaking hands.

She couldn't see Kai anywhere. He must've freed himself and run back into the forest. She saw Matt clench his fists, his face set like a funeral mask. He disappeared into the woods. After Kai.

Bonnie felt sick to her stomach. What had she done? Had _she_ done it?

Tyler started running towards her. "Hey -"

She ran. She ran blindly, crashing into people, pushing them aside. April tried to call her back, but she ran away even from those who meant well.

She needed someone like her. A fellow freak.

* * *

Maybe this was the least smart course of action, but she had to find him.

She couldn't go home. Couldn't call her dad. What would he be able to do except worry? He'd just relocate them again. Maybe they'd go west this time. They always had to leave because of her. Her mom had left too.

Bonnie shook her head. There was no time for that right now.

She _could_ call the police.

She laughed out loud, inhaling cold night air. _Yeah, right._ She wasn't that suicidal.

Bonnie called out his name.

"Kai! Kai!"

 _Please be out here. Please come back. Please be okay._

She had a vague idea about Preacher Parker's house being on the edge of the woods. She hoped Kai had managed to limp his way home. She didn't want to think about the two boys who fell in the water. She hadn't stayed to find out if they were alive, and the shameful thing was that she did not feel remorse. Not yet. Maybe she would when the reality of it finally hit her. But for now, she had to find -

" _You_."

Bonnie whirled around.

Mystic High's homecoming king and favorite heartthrob was staring daggers at her. Golden dust haloed his hair even in the dark.

He looked out of breath and feral, fists clenching and unclenching, ready to inflict damage.

"I saw what you did, you fucking freak."

"Matt -"

"You made them fall. I _saw_ you. Trying to protect your psycho boyfriend. You're disgusting."

Bonnie stood her ground.

"It was an accident. You shouldn't have climbed up there. I told you to stop."

"Oh, so now it's _my_ fault?" he growled.

Bonnie was dumbfounded. "Of course it's your fault! You knew it was dangerous! You were going to kill him!"

"Like hell we were! The freak's survived worse. Deserves all he gets, anyway."

"You don't get to decide that," she said, taking a step back.

"And _you_ don't get to mess with my friends," he pointed a finger at her. "I'll tell sheriff Forbes what you did."

Bonnie blinked. "You'll sound crazy. I didn't do _anything_."

"Sure, folks like you are never guilty. But I know what you did."

Bonnie clenched her jaw. "Folks like me? _Fuck you_ , you racist asshole."

Matt breathed in noisily.

The words loosened something in him. The last hinge.

He lunged at her. Bonnie wasn't quick enough. He grabbed her arm and yanked her back, fingers like vise. Bonnie elbowed him in the ribs.

Matt knocked her knee and made her stumble. He pushed her to the ground. Bonnie scrambled desperately away from him, trying to put as much distance between them as she could, but he was too big.

Matt pinned her with his body. He reeked of alcohol and anger.

"You think you're too good for me, huh?" and his mouth bent down sloppily to the corner of her lips.

"Get off me!"

"Ask me nicely."

Bonnie spat in his face. Matt grabbed her chin. Bonnie bit his finger. Hard.

"Ow, you bitch, you're gonna regret that -"

But his words were robbed of breath a moment later. Like a fat balloon pricked by a needle. His body sagged. He howled.

An arrow had been loosed into his shoulder blades.

Another one hit the back of his thigh.

Bonnie felt them sink into his flesh - the moment the arrows went in - and shuddered.

"FUCK!" he screamed in pain.

Before she could wriggle from under him, a hand dragged him off her.

Kai Parker stood in front of her, wielding an arrow sling like a knight in not very shining armor.

"See," he panted with a shaky grin, "told you I'd show you something special in the woods."

Bonnie stared up at him in stupid relief. She'd never been happier to see him.

Matt moaned in agony, arrows sticking out of him like meaty piece of game, soon to be skinned and cooked and smoked on spits.

Bonnie crawled towards him.

"Don't touch the arrows, he'll just bleed more -" Kai began, lowering the sling.

He thought she'd try to wrench them out. He watched with wide eyes as Bonnie gripped the shaft of an arrow and twisted it, making Matt howl and screech and furrow the ground with his nails.

"Now you can tell the sheriff what I did," Bonnie said, twisting the arrow again for good measure.

Matt's howls were sweet music to his ears.

Kai crouched down over his body.

Bonnie caught his gaze. He was drinking her in. Adoring her, really. There was no other word for it.

He was still watching her as he drawled, "Mattie Dicks, you're not looking too swell…"

Bonnie let out a terrified laugh. No going back now.

Kai reached out with his hand towards her. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

And the boyish sincerity and _jealousy_ in his words ("only _I_ get to hurt you"), so different yet so fitting with his twisted sense of self, made her grip the front of his shirt, dragging him towards her. She pressed her lips over his bruised mouth.

As first kisses went, this one was pretty memorable.

Kai latched onto her lips hungrily, like a dog starved for too long. He cradled her cheek, pulling her towards him. Between them, Matt groaned and bled on the forest floor, and the sight of him and the sticky blood between their fingers only made the kiss sweeter. He captured her lower lip and worried it between his teeth lovingly, licking the punctures he made, and she moaned into his mouth, tasting his last meal. His hands traveled lower, showing his appreciation for the little black number she was wearing, groping and squeezing and trying to find warm skin. He was clumsy and predatory and sweet and rough, a weird balance that could tip over at any moment. He'd pulled her almost on top of Matt and her body was pressing down on his wounds and Donovan cried out for them to stop, to _get off him._ But she couldn't hear him. Kai trailed wet kisses down the lining of her throat and his other hand was stroking her thigh, fingers under the hem of her dress.

Bonnie knew somewhere in the back of her mind that she was not going to literally fuck on corpses, no matter Kai's twisted fantasies, but - but maybe just a little taste - just a furtive touch - stealing pleasure because it was so terribly wrong - rubbing her thighs as his hand slipped inside her underwear, it's not that disturbing after all, you'd be surprised how quickly you can come when someone's bleeding under you - and she did, she _did_.

She had to hold onto the arrow sticking out of Matt's back, because she was crashing and the waves were warm like blood and Matt's screams did not lessen the pleasure and Kai gave her a taste, pressed his thumb against her bottom lip, told her to open up, and she tasted herself and Matt's blood and it was a heady cocktail, delicious and disgusting, and she sucked on his thumb, cuz she wanted _more_ , and he groaned as he watched her, so he continued to fuck her with his fingers and make her taste herself while a boy screamed for his life under them.

It was picture-perfect.

What did the songs say? They didn't.

It was downright murderous to be young and in love.

* * *

"Now what?" she asked as they parted for breath.

* * *

 _(TBC?)_


End file.
